Live from Peoria, Illinois, it’s Saturday Night, starring this week’s hosts, Salt and Emack & Bolio’s with two MBIP Best in Peoria food selections! Now, please welcome from Peoria Heights, this week’s hosts, Salt and Emack & Bolio’s!
Last month I started yet another series here on MBIP spotlighting what I consider to be the best of Peoria in a food category from a restaurant. In that fist installment I highlighted the dinner rolls at The Fish House and tonight we have not one, but two "Best of Peoria" dishes to feature. We’re starting here at Salt in Peoria Heights on Prospect Road.
Check out the sign! The nights (and days) are limited here at Salt! I had no idea that this was happening! We need to get inside and see what’s going on here!
So let’s get inside already...sheesh!
I took a seat in the middle of the bar near Ryan and there’s bartender, Josh, with a cold beer. Josh confirmed that Salt is down to less than a month of being in operation. That’s the bad news, the good news is that owner Travis Mohlenbrink is going to try out a new concept here. According to Josh, it’s going to have a Mexican/taco theme to it and the place is going to be remodeled. So we better get some pictures in here while we can, I’ve always liked the ambiance and atmosphere in here. Time to put the MBIP Camera to work for some final photos of Salt!
I love the bar area in here with the lights hanging overhead that create a relaxing and comforting cyan hue over the entire bar. There’s a shot from the other end of the lit-up bar and some of the multi-colored Salt candles that also add to the nice vibe in here. There’s tables that line the wall opposite the bar for those that want to dine in this space.
Here’s the dining room for those that prefer to dine in a more traditional space. The hue in here is orange and some may prefer that, but me...
I like the cyan atmosphere in the bar, so we’re back over on this side.
And we’re just in time for dinner that’s being served up by John and one of this month’s selections for The Saturday Night Best of Peoria!
I started off with an order of the Sweet Chili Calamari. These are strips of calamari that are breaded and deep fried and served with a homemade sweet Thai chili sauce. This is a tasty dish and cooked perfectly, but it’s not my choice for one of this month’s MBIP Saturday Night Best of Peoria selections, that honor goes to the dish that’s served up next...
Which is Salt’s Deep-Fried Deviled Eggs. Yeah, that’s right, these eggs are so devilish that have to be deep-fried to keep them in line! I’ll write more about them in the review below, but these are a real taste sensation and I think they’re the best deviled eggs, not only in Peoria, but they’re the best I’ve ever had, anywhere!
They’re crispy on the outside and the filling is so creamy and spicy and check out the tiny bacon strips on top, these are so delicious! I know they’re changing the menu and concept in here, but I hope they either keep the deviled eggs on the menu or transfer the dish to another one of Travis’ restaurants!
As I was munching on the deviled eggs, John showed me this dessert presentation that he delivered to Dawn and Jim at their table nearby. It’s called a Grilled Doughnut S’More and it’s a couple of grilled cake doughnuts with melted marshmallow and chocolate nutella drizzled on top. Wow, this looks amazing, we have other dessert plans, but I may have to come back before the 30th to try this out before the menu and this place is redone!
Alright, my plates are all empty, time to leave Salt and head on down Prospect for the dessert portion of this Best of Peoria Saturday Night!
Here we are, just a couple blocks away from Salt at Emack & Bolio’s, my other selection for the Best of Peoria Saturday Night! Let’s go in and see what’s going on in here on this fine Saturday night!
There’s a familiar face back there, it’s one of the owners of Emack & Bolio’s and this blog’s Spiritual Guru, Tim Hennessey with Sophie, who’s worked here for about three years! Great to see both of them and there’s more familiar faces that were just heading out the door as I was walking in and Tim abandoned Sophie at the front counter to pose with them...
Its Clare and P.B! P.B. is the owner of Born Paint and was featured in a lunch segment over three years ago! We’re overdue for another lunch, so stay tuned for that! Clare has never been featured here on MBIP, but she’s a faithful reader and I always love to hear that! And now Tim needs to get back to work!
Okay, there’s Tim back behind the counter with Sophie and look at him fondling his Adam’s Apple, that can only mean one thing...
Synchronized ice cream scooping by Tim and Sophie! Pretty damned impressive! And the ice cream looks so good!
Wow, this is definitely worthy of the best ice cream in Peoria! I can’t remember the exact name of what I got (I really need to start writing this stuff down!) but there’s cookie dough bits, chocolate, nuts and rich and creamy ice cream. So delicious! Thanks to everyone at Salt and to Tim and Sophie at Emack & Bolio’s for a great night sampling some of Peoria’s best food in town!
This is the second installment in this Saturday Night Best of Peoria series and I’m trying to point out dishes that are really delicious and unique that you may not know about or take for granted, like last month’s selection of the dinner rolls at The Fish House.
This month I wanted to spotlight the Deep-Fried Deviled Eggs at Salt and I’m glad I decided to do this because I found out that Salt will cease to exist after October 30th, so if you want to try these, you better get over there pronto! And I suggest you do because these deviled eggs are the best I’ve ever had and I’ve had a lot of deviled eggs in my days and nights! What makes these so special are a few things, one being that the outside is coated in Panko bread crumbs and then deep-fried. The filling is the whipped egg yolk infused with spicy Sriracha. As if that wasn’t enough, the eggs are topped off with tiny but tasty strips of crispy, smoky, sugar-cured bacon. I’ve never experienced so much flavor in a deviled egg in my life. If you haven’t tried these, get over to Salt and try them out while you still can!
The other food I’m spotlighting tonight isn’t a hidden gem from a restaurant, it’s the ice cream at Emack & Bolio’s. There’s a wide range of flavors available and each one is creamy, rich, smooth and delicious! If you’re dining at one of the restaurants in the Heights, or anywhere in Peoria, skip the dessert menu and head over to Emack’s and get a bowl or a cone of their delicious ice cream. And there’s also freshly made candy and vintage sodas to enjoy there. It’s the best way to end a Saturday Night Best of Peoria dinner, I guarantee it!
Salt
4542 N Prospect Road
Peoria Heights
309-966-1035
Emack & Bolio’s
4534 N Prospect Road
Peoria Heights
309-682-3530
Related Post: Saturday Night Best Of Peoria: Dinner Rolls At The Fish House.